Soho gunman gets 26 years

A gang member caught on CCTV handing a gun to an associate moments before he shot a rival outside a nightclub has been jailed for 26 years.

Tristan Samuels was blasted twice in the back as he tried to run off with a friend who had been knifed in a brawl at the Opium club in Soho on 25 August 2019.

Sheldon Pommell, 37, was seen leaning into a silver Jaguar in nearby Rupert Street and passing an object to 39-year-old Richard Palmer, who puts it in a bag.

Pommell then pointed in the direction of Mr Samuels, in his 20s, as another man shouts at the victim to run.

Palmer pulls a Beretta handgun from his bag and catches up with Mr Samuels and shoots him in the middle of the road as onlookers scream.

The gunman then ran to the Jaguar where Pommell was waiting and the pair fled the scene.

Mr Samuels took himself to hospital with gunshot wounds and was lucky to survive.

His friend was also taken to hospital with stab wounds.

Police found the silver Jaguar parked outside Pommell’s home in Ruislip, west London on 26 August 2019.

Police searched the address and found clothing and jewellery he was seen wearing on CCTV outside the club the day before.

Palmer had met with gangland armourer Bolanle Roberts, 43, to get rid of the Beretta before he was arrested. His fingerprints were found on the rear doors of the Jaguar.

The men were part of a gang of major drug dealers and when Roberts was arrested on August 27 in Acton police recovered £48,132 in cash and £27,000 worth of heroin and crack cocaine,

Officers also found keys to a flat in Coleridge Drive, Ruislip. In an airing cupboard of that property, a cache of guns and ammunition were hidden in a rucksack.

Police found the fully loaded Beretta used in the shooting, fitted with a silencer and £95,000 of worth of heroin.

Woolwich Crown Court heard Roberts acted a ‘quartermaster’ for criminals who needed quick access to firearms.

Following Robert’s arrest Palmer when into hiding at a hotel in Hanwell with the help of Robert Dolan, 34.

Following Dolan’s arrest in Teddington, detectives seized a shoebox containing £6,840 and a mobile phone.

Last year Palmer, of Gurnell Grove, Ealing, was sentenced to 15 years and six months for attempted murder and firearm offences.

Roberts, of Balfour Road, Ealing, received 15 years for possessing firearms and supplying Class A drugs. Dolan, of Sutton Court Road, Hounslow, admitted assisting an offender, conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and possession of criminal property. He was jailed for 12-and-a-half years.

Pommell, of Park Avenue, Ruislip, became the last member of the gang to be dealt with when he was jailed for 26 years after he was convicted of attempted murder following a retrial.

Detective Sergeant Chris Ladmore, the investigating officer from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command, said: ‘The men behind this violent incident have now received a combined 69-year jail sentence for their crimes.

‘This operation started off as an attempted murder investigation, but led to us discovering a cache of loaded firearms and a wealth of ammunition that we were able to remove from the streets of London. Every bullet seized is a potential life saved.

‘The victim who was shot on Rupert Street was lucky to survive – it easily could have had a different ending. The shooting is a stark reminder of the selfish disregard for human life and brazen use of firearms that people like Pommell, Palmer and Roberts hold.

‘Tackling violence remains our top priority and restricting the availability of firearms is critical to protecting communities. Firearms have no place in London and this seizure has inevitably prevented further violence. We will continue to robustly target both those who carry firearms and those who supply them.’

Earlier Detective Chief Inspector Sean Stewart, the senior investigating officer attached to the Specialist Crime Command, said: ‘Palmer, showed no regard for his actions in what was a crowded area.

‘I want to thank the members of public for reporting the incident to police on the night, and for the witnesses that demonstrated real courage coming forward to testify.’